Those of Wit and Learning
by TheGirlWhoRemembers
Summary: Michael Corner is a dreamer. Terry Boot is a watcher. Anthony Goldstein is an analyser. Padma Patil is an asker. The four of them are Ravenclaws, and the four of them are friends. These are constants throughout their lives, through times of change and learning. Companion piece to 'Lessons'.


AN: I have no idea where this came from, but I just had a sudden desire to write about some rather minor Harry Potter characters, after stumbling across some stories on minor characters. There is a companion piece to this, centering around Padma Patil during the Second Wizarding War. It will be titled Lessons, and I will likely publish it within the next week.

I don't think this is my best work, but it was more an experiment in characterization that I thought I'd share.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, nor do I claim to own it.

* * *

Michael is a dreamer.

He sees things that aren't really there.

He doubts reality.

He can jump to conclusions.

He is not the most logical, nor the most practical.

He has quite an imagination.

He wishes for things, hopes for things.

He is quite unfocused, for a Ravenclaw, at least.

He doesn't study very much.

He forgets to do his homework more than anyone else in the Tower.

He is bright; there's no doubt about that.

He keeps good marks, though it is plain that his mind is often elsewhere, somewhere in the clouds.

He thinks of bigger things than school; of futures, of heroes, of villains, of romances.

His ideas are based on dreams; a never-ending stream of fantasies, of nightmares.

He wears his heart on his sleeve.

His emotions are unhidden, easy to see.

He is the most hot-headed of his friends.

He is also the most easily inspired.

He is passionate, loves hard, loves quickly and loves deep.

There is always a girl, always someone he is pining after.

What happened with Ginny hurt him beyond imagine.

That's why he ran off to Cho so quickly.

He wanted to forget, he wanted new dreams, wanted someone else.

He pursues love because in his dreams, it is beauty, it is meaning, it is fulfilment.

When Michael has an idea, when Michael wants something, everyone knows.

In Third Year, when he has a crush on Padma, it is strikingly obvious.

(He even sends her flowers, and writes her poems. As a secret admirer, of course, because as open as he is, she is still one of his best friends, and he doesn't want to lose that friendship.)

He is terribly hurt when she doesn't return his feelings.

He was sure there was something between them.

He loves his friends, and everyone can see.

He makes bold declarations.

Physical affection comes easy to him; a hug for Padma, an arm around Terry's shoulders, a slap on the back for Anthony.

They mean everything to him, and he shows it comfortably, easily, naturally, _ideally._

Michael is a dreamer.

* * *

Terry is a watcher.

He sees things that are there.

He knows things for sure.

He draws his conclusions from his observations.

He has an insatiable lust for more data.

He is calm and collected, because he knows who he is, who everyone else is.

He knows where he stands.

He is focused and driven.

He works enough and studies enough to meet his goals.

He does his homework, but he prefers to observe.

He thinks you learn more that way.

He keeps excellent marks, but he knows there is more than school.

His ideas are mercurial, of fitting together the pieces until they make sense, and once they do, they are genius.

He doesn't seem _that _emotionally reserved.

Yet hope, jealousy, love, remain buried deep within him.

He is not daring enough to allow himself to feel them, for there are too many variables, too many possibilities. These are uncertain emotions.

He knows that you can't always get what you want, and these particular emotions are often for what he knows he cannot have.

He would rather spare himself the pain.

He flirts, it seems, but it never means anything.

He is witty and confident and always knows what to say.

Perhaps some people misinterpret what he means.

His heart is under lock and key, anyway.

He resists love, for he observes that it causes vulnerability, suffering, hurt more than it causes joy and happiness.

When Terry knows something, when Terry wants something, he is careful with the information.

When he falls in love, even he struggles to notice.

(He is no romantic, he is rather pragmatic, he would not send flowers or write poems. He is not reckless enough to put his feelings out there, to even feel them, anonymously or not.)

He won't allow both of them to hurt, to suffer.

He knows there could be something between them, and he knows that it is not the time for that.

He loves his friends, though it is not easy to see, for even he won't admit it.

He is always there when they need him.

Physical affection is not something he detests, nor gives openly. He accepts, and he gives when it is needed, no more, no less.

They mean everything to him, and the fact that he makes that admission is enough to show it.

Terry is a watcher.

* * *

Anthony is an analyser.

He works out what things mean.

He understands them.

He condenses them into processes, plans, rules, equations.

He wants to comprehend.

He is always thinking, mind always whirring, because he just really wants to simplify things.

He isn't always aware of what something means, but he works to get there.

He is very focused, almost obsessive.

He works and studies harder than anyone else in the Tower.

He does his homework, and goes the extra mile or two.

He thinks that supports his learning and understanding.

He has amazing marks, for school is his world at the moment.

His ideas come from slow, logical process and methodology. They are always solid and steady.

He tries to hide them, but emotions tumble out of him easily.

He is as easy to read as an open book, simple.

He has always been unsure of what to make of them, for they are things he struggles to understand.

He finds himself and his emotions baffling and confusing.

Try as he might, they are always hard to comprehend.

He slowly grows out of his difficulty in talking to girls.

Slowly, he learns what to say and when to say it, growing in confidence.

Yet there remains an awkwardness about him.

He doesn't understand matters of the heart anyway.

He accepts love, because he can see that it is an inevitable part of the human condition.

When Anthony understands something, when Anthony wants something, it is written all over his face.

When he has a crush or falls in love, it terrifies him.

(He reads up on it, tries to understand it, follows every piece of advice he is given. He sends flowers because that's what his research told him. He doesn't really know what to do.)

He suffers for it.

He has no idea if she even feels the same way.

He loves his friends, and he shows it in his own way.

He proofreads their essays, and explains things when they need it.

He accepts their affections, even though at first they make him uncomfortable, though he grows to enjoy them.

They mean everything to him, even though he's not quite sure what that even means yet.

Anthony is an analyser.

* * *

Padma is an asker.

She likes to know why, what if, how.

She tries to find causes, effects.

She solves mysteries.

She is searching for motive, for reason.

She is seeking meaning.

She worries easily, for her mind is full of questions.

She is so very driven.

She works and studies hard, worries for her marks.

But even so, she prefers to just think. There is so much _more _in that.

She thinks that school worries her too much and that she needs more purpose to stop her anxiety.

She needn't worry, for her marks are excellent nonetheless.

Her ideas come from careful reflection, some slow, some quick, and they always carry a truth about them.

She prefers privacy with her emotions.

She is quite adept at hiding them, or so she thinks.

There are some she is convinced don't exist, or that she can't feel, not like normal people anyway.

Love, for instance.

She is much too rational to fall, she thinks.

She has never been uncomfortable with boys, though.

She will never be her sister, however, and she prefers not to date.

She does a little, but she thinks she will never fall in love.

It's probably better she doesn't, anyway, for then she would need to invest so much faith in someone, something, without knowing all the reasons.

She doubts love, because she can't solve its mysteries, find its reason, its motive.

When she falls in love, she dismisses it as a petty crush.

(She's had a few of those, the boy from Beauxbatons was older and wiser and so very charming. He didn't try to buy her flowers, which she finds impractical, he simply talked to her and danced with her and taught her a little French.)

She can't allow it to be anything more, for that would alter her world irrevocably.

She's been through enough change already, anyway.

She loves her friends, and she shows it pragmatically, for she isn't even sure she loves them.

She dries their clothes when they come in from the rain, she teaches them mending spells for their socks.

Physical affection, particularly with her male friends, is something that was once awkward, but soon becomes natural.

They mean everything to her, and she doesn't even need to ask why, for she just knows.

Padma is an asker.

* * *

But there comes a time when things will change.

Michael will be forced to let go of his dreams and enter reality.

He will make his dreams of heroes come true.

Terry will gain the daring needed to let his heart be free.

He will open himself to pain and suffering.

Anthony will learn that some things don't need to be understood, they just have to be done.

He will learn that sometimes, one just needs to act.

Padma will discover that some things just shouldn't be doubted.

She will find that faith can make a burden so much easier to bear.

* * *

But some things will never change.

Michael, Terry, Anthony and Padma will always be friends.

Perhaps some things do change between them, but they will always be friends.

Michael will always be a dreamer.

Terry will always be a watcher.

Anthony will always be an analyser.

Padma will always be an asker.


End file.
